


cake, flowers and friends

by Daniela_is_not_amused



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Birthday Fluff, Birthday Party, Friendship, Gen, Logic | Logan Sanders Is A Good Friend, Logic | Logan Sanders is trying, Miscommunication, Misunderstandings, Past Child Abuse, Past Homelessness, Sad Anxiety | Virgil Sanders, Sad Logic | Logan Sanders, Sad with a Happy Ending, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Hatred, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-28
Updated: 2019-09-28
Packaged: 2020-10-29 23:34:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20804816
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daniela_is_not_amused/pseuds/Daniela_is_not_amused
Summary: Patton wants to give Virgil his first ever surprise birthday party. Virgil wants to give Patton a surprise birthday party. Logan just wants to be a good friend.He's not very good at that.





	cake, flowers and friends

**Author's Note:**

> English is not my first language. Not beta-read. All mistakes are mine.
> 
> Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended.

“Did you know Virgil’s never had a birthday party in his life?”

Logan looked over at Patton, who was running his hands through his hair and looking distressed. “Huh?”

“I mean, it’s not that much of a surprise, I guess. Growing up on the streets like that. He knows the day, but it’s like he had no idea anyone would celebrate him being born. It’s just a shame, you know?”

“I guess,” said Logan, taking another spoonful of jam.

Patton sat up straight as an idea hit him, his eyes bright. “We should throw him a party. You and me. A surprise party. Everyone will be together for the Roman’s that day anyway.”

“Oh, Pat, I dunno,” said Logan. “That seems like a lot of work.”

“The two of us could do it.”

“And it’s your birthday too,” Logan pointed out.

Patton made a dismissive gesture, shooing away the very idea. “He deserves it more than I do. And just think of how happy he’d be,” he said coaxingly. “Come on. Just imagine how he’d smile.”

“Oh, damn it,” said Logan, knowing perfectly well that once you imagined Virgil happy you’d have to do whatever it took to achieve it.

Look, Logan knew that he was kind of a mediocre friend, okay? A great student, but not the best friend. He was distant and logical and sometimes a little cold. But somehow he’d ended up with not one but three friends (Roman still took his observations as personal attacks, from time to time, but they had become close friends in the past two years) who were warm and sunny and friendly and - for some reason - seemed to think he was a great guy. Not just a great student or tutor or something, but a great guy. Three friends. Now and then - not often, but now and then, fleetingly, in the middle of the night when he went to use the bathroom and caught sight of his face in the mirror - Logan suspected that was about four more friends than he deserved.

“You’ll help, right?” Patton said. And smiled at him.

“Oh, damn it,” Logan muttered again.

“Whatever you do, don’t let it slip to Virgil or you’ll ruin the surprise”. 

Patton had been very clear. So when Virgil made a beeline toward him, Logan quickly folded up the guest list he was working on and shoved it in his bag.

“Logan!” Virgil smirked at him and patted his arm, and Logan allowed it this one time. Then his motions turned serious and he held his hands up in the air. “Patton,” he said. “Birthday.”

“Uh,” Logan said in a panic, but Virgil was going on, making a motion like throwing confetti, tapping his own chest proudly, then pounding Logan’s chest.

“You. Me. Birthday party. For Patton.”

“You want me to help you plan a birthday party for Patton?” Logan asked with a growing sense of deja vu.

Virgil beamed at him and nodded, throwing his arms around him. Logan allowed it this one time.

“I’m really busy that day,” Logan said, stalling frantically.

Virgil looked sad.

“But… I… can probably help you, I guess.” Logan felt the words dragged from him at the sight of Virgil’s wobbling lower lip. Damn it.

Virgil leaped to his feet in joy, sketching out the details of his  gigantic party with huge sweeping gestures of his arms, knocking over a coat rack and a chair in the process. It would, if Logan was reading him right, involve a  _ piñata _ , a four-layer chocolate cake with vanilla frosting, and a trip to the ice skating rink.

“Is that really how Patton’s family celebrates birthdays?” Logan asked dubiously.

Virgil shrugged. Sometimes Logan wasn’t sure Virgil had a really good understanding of how the average person celebrates birthdays, but he supposed growing up semi-feral on the streets of a big city could do that to you. “Please, Lo? ”

“Okay, I guess I can… Call to order the cake?” Logan couldn’t imagine how Virgil was going to make his order clear across a phone line. “And help you with the guest list?” He’d just have to split it in half now - some to Patton’s party and some to Virgil’s. He could do this. He just had to help with some of the details and make sure Patton got to his party and Virgil got to his party on time. What could possibly go wrong?

“Logan!  T hank you so much! ” Virgil threw his arms around him, alight with joy.

Logan allowed it this one time.

As it turned out, a lot of things could go wrong, Logan thought dolefully as he ran along the sidewalk, sweating in the July heat. For example, Patton could book a bar and Virgil a restaurant four blocks apart. And then -

“There you are, Lo!” Patton grabbed his arm the second he came in the door. “I’ve been looking all over for you. Help me with the chairs, would you? I asked Remus, but he's useless - I mean, who sets up chairs by kicking them around?”

Logan arranged the chairs around the tables while Patton fiddled with napkins and other students, some of whom Logan recognized, drifted in and out. “Um, I’ll be right back, okay?” he said when he was done.

Patton looked distracted. “Sure, I guess. Do you know where Virgil is? I’ll need you to fetch him soon.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Logan said, edging for the door. “No problem.”

Once out of Patton’s sight, he broke into a run, heading back to the restaurant. The florist halfway between gave him an odd look as he went by for the fifth time in an hour, but he had neither the time nor energy to spare to glare at.

“Logan!” Virgil was looking comically overwhelmed as he tried to direct the staff of the restaurant. He was speaking at a socially acceptable volume, unlike most of the time, but none of the waiters seemed to understand him. “There's no cake. No cake, Logan!”

“Are you sure you’re not better off without one? I mean, the last time we bought cake Remus ended up…” Virgil stared at him, his eyes filling with tears. “Okay, let me call them again.” Moments later it had become clear that someone needed to go pick up the cake. Luckily the bakery was right next to the bar Patton was at. “I’ll get it,” Logan explained to Virgil.

“And Patton?” Virgil gestured, making clear that it was Logan’s job to gather Patton up and deliver him to this surprise party.

“Don’t you have anyone else you can ask to do that?” Logan looked around at Remy and his friends milling about, drinking beer and arm wrestling and getting into belching contests. Holy shit, he was the most reliable person there. What a horrible thought. “Okay, never mind, I’ll deal with it.”

The same stretch of sidewalk; he was getting good at knowing where the obstacles would be as he ran along it. The bakery was just past the bar, he just needed to -

“Logan!” Patton lurched out of the bar and grabbed him as he went by. “Where the hell have you been? Where the hell is Virgil? The party's started and he's not here!”

Logan pulled away. “I gotta - this is - I’m going to go get him, okay?”

“Hurry up, Lo!” Patton’s voice followed after him as he charged toward the bakery.

He had to find an alternate route with the cake so Patton wouldn’t see him, trotting as fast as he dared with three layers of delicious-looking chocolate and vanilla frosting cradled in his arms, trying not to sweat on it. The odds were against him, but somehow, somehow, he arrived at the restaurant with the cake intact. Music was playing and Remus was trying to hit the hanging piñata with a  _ baguette _ .

“Cake,” Logan panted, handing it to a waiter and then doubling over, his hands on his knees, catching his breath.

“Where’s Patton?” Virgil almost wailed. Logan slithered to the floor so he could meet Virgil’s eyes, tapping his wrist and gazing imploringly at him.  _ I ask so little of you, Logan. I ask so little and I put up with so much, and the only thing I want is for this party to go well, and you’re failing me _ .

Sometimes Logan really hated that he could read Virgil so well.

“Come… with… me,” Logan wheezed, grabbing Virgil’s arm. “Just… you come too, and we’ll get him together.” Virgil threw out his arms to take in the barely-contained chaos of the party. “I know, I know, but - please?”

Virgil crossed his arms and shook his head. “Patton,” he said.

Logan wanted to collapse to the floor and kick his feet against the cool tiles. He wanted to scream. He wanted to grab that cake and throw it as hard as he could against the wall. But it was Virgil’s birthday, and Patton’s birthday. So he hauled himself to his feet and nodded wearily. “I’ll get him.”

He trotted heavily back toward the bar in the gathering dusk, passing the puzzled florist again, a sense of impending doom thickening around him as he went.

“Look, Patton, I know I don’t have Virgil yet, but -”

Patton cut him off before he could even finish his defensive bluster. “Damn it, Lo!” He was nearly vibrating with rage. “I thought I could count on you! I thought I could rely on you! I trusted you to help, and you keep disappearing and leaving me alone, and you haven’t even brought Virgil here!”

Logan held up his hands as if Patton had tried to punch him. “I’m trying -”

“No, you’re not! You just keep vanishing, you’re never here when I need you -” Patton leveled an accusing finger at him and said with emphasis: “Logan, you are being a bad friend.”

Logan felt his hands drop before the cold vehemence in Patton’s voice. “I-” His voice dried up. It was a very odd feeling. “I-” He didn’t have anything to say. “I’ll go,” he finally managed.

He trudged down the sidewalk in the dark, his feet heavy. Halfway back to the restaurant, he just stopped. He couldn’t take another step. What would even be the point? Virgil was just going to be mad at him when he showed up without Patton- no, even worse, Virgil would be disappointed in him. He’d look at Logan with his eyes all big and sad and his lower lip would wobble, and-

He was sitting on the curb now, though he had no memory of how he got there. The stars looked down on him, and Logan knew what they saw. They saw a bad friend. And Logan knew they saw the truth. He hadn’t even wanted to be a good friend, he was pretty sure that was out of reach. But if he could have been, for just one day, a mediocre friend…

Logan put his head in his hands and, for an endless and agonizing time, was nothing but pain.

And then he felt two presences settle down beside him on the curb, one on either side. He buried his head in his crossed arms and refused to look up.

“Logan,” Virgil said, full of reproach but also full of affection, and Logan felt an arm settle across his shoulders. He allowed it this one- oh fuck it, he welcomed it, he leaned into it, he almost sobbed under its steadying weight.

“Hey there, buddy,” said Patton, and Logan felt his hand patting at his back in nervous little motions, more tentative than Virgil as always. “I finally just called Virgil and eventually we figured out what had happened. So we came looking for you.”

“We came to find you, Logan,” said Virgil.

“Great,” said Logan, trying to put some snarl into it. “Now go away.” The sentence ended with a damp snuffle that he suspected contradicted the snarl entirely.

“Virgil brought some cake,” said Patton. “And I picked up-” There was a brief pause and Logan felt something placed behind his ear. Petals brushed his temple. Patton had put a fucking flower behind his ear.

“We've got cake, flowers and  friends ” said Virgil. “ It's a  good party. Right here.”

“With your shitty friend,” Logan muttered. “Go back and party with your good friends.”

Patton laughed. “Our good friends are partying just fine without us, kiddo,” he said. “They don’t need us. Our  _ best _ friend, on the other hand, is here and looks like he could use a piece of cake and some company, because he's gotten all worn out trying to make two different surprise parties work out right.”

Logan raised his head slowly and looked at Patton, who had a fucking daisy tucked behind his ear. He looked at Virgil, who held up a napkin-wrapped hunk of cake with his free hand.

“Logan  is not a good friend ” Virgil mumbled and Logan wanted to cry right there and then.

“What Virgil means is you’re not a very good friend, it’s true,” Patton said. “But somehow you still manage to be a great friend.”

Logan blinked a few times as the words sank in. Then he slung one arm around Virgil and the other around Patton, and rose slowly to his feet, dragging them with him until he was at his full height. He took a deep, deep breath, filling his lungs with all the air he could, and lifted his head to address the sky.

“You hear that?” he bellowed at the stars, at the heavens, at the whole world. At himself and his doubts. At everyone except his two crazy friends who were letting him clutch them close. “Did you hear them say it? I knew it all along! I’m a great fucking friend!”

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback is appreciated.


End file.
